1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an applicator of the tubular type, which has a multi-layered cardboard tube, a crushable liquid filled ampoule, a uniquely designed foam tip, and which is activated by an L-shaped slide ring activator tool carried on the outside of the applicator.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Applicators for dispensing liquids, which are of the single use throwaway type are in widespread use.
Many of the applicators contain a glass or plastic liquid filled crushable ampoule, which is encased in a plastic tube that has a porous tip glued to the open end. This inner assembly may also have to be further enclosed in an external cardboard tube to prevent the glass shards from penetrating the inner assembly and cutting the end user when the total package is manually crushed. The seal on the porous tip is critical and must be continuous around the circumference of the tube to prevent the liquid from bypassing the porous tip, and thus creating excessive dripping or excessive flow around the tip. Conventional type applicators, therefore require both an inner plastic tube with a sealed applicator tip and an outer cardboard tube for shard protection.
While the applicators are of many different types and configurations, they must be inexpensive, easy and safe to use, retain the liquid in the container until use, protect the user from contact with the liquid and contact with the broken glass shards generated upon breaking the glass ampoules.
These devices may utilize a lever carried on the container which is rotated to cause the ampoule to break and the liquid to be released for dispensing. As discussed in my prior U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,744, these single lever activators can cause the glass shards to penetrate the tube through the opposite side of the tube. As mentioned above, some of these package devices must rely on an inner and an outer tube to prevent the glass shards from coming through the outer container, which adds to the costs, and are necessary to provide an inner xe2x80x9cmoisture proof and leak proofxe2x80x9d environment for the liquid causing it to exit only through the porous tip.
One example of a slide ring activator type dispenser is disclosed in my prior U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,744, which, while satisfactory, requires a molded two piece plastic outer container which is more expensive to construct, and assemble than the device of the current invention. In addition, the slide ring applicator of my prior patent is limited to one function, i.e., to easily crush the inner ampoule, and it does not have a built in edge guide for guiding its travel while dispensing the liquid.
The liquid applicator of the invention has an outer cardboard tube with an impervious inner layer that is made as part of the tube construction (thus providing a more cost effective solution to the need to provide a separate inner plastic tube to xe2x80x9ccontain the liquidxe2x80x9d within the device after activation). The invention also has a glass ampule therein, which is easily crushed by the L-shaped level type slide activator tool, which tool also acts as an edge guide for the applicator, and which provides many additional advantages. For example, the tool can be removed from the expended applicator after use and reused on a new applicator, thus saving costs. The applicator of the invention also has a uniquely configured porous foam tip. The tip is designed with a partially cut internal ridge that presents a very torturous path for the dispensed liquid to pass, thus preventing the liquid from xe2x80x9cshort circuitingxe2x80x9d the controlled flow of liquid through the porous tip and not going straight down the inside of the tube, which the prior art straight porous tips would allow, causing non uniform liquid application or even drips. This uniquely designed tip could even be used without gluing the tip to the tube, and still provide uniform liquid application if so desired. Finally, the design of the porous tip can easily be increased in diameter to provide for wider liquid application than can conventional xe2x80x9cstraight plug type tipsxe2x80x9d without altering the tube diameter or adding an expansion collar to allow for wider tip reconfigurations. Thus, this invention is more easily and less costly to modify to lay down liquid widths.
This invention relates to a liquid applicator device, which has an outer multilayered cardboard tube with a liquid filled glass ampoule therein. The package device is xe2x80x9csealedxe2x80x9d with a specially cut and configured foam tip at the open end of the tube. There is an L-shaped slide ring activator tool carried on the outside of the tube that is rotated to crush the ampoule to release the liquid to be dispensed through the applicator tip. As in my prior invention (U.S. Pat. No. 5,509,744) the crushing action is inwardly directed on two sides of the tube, preventing shards from penetrating the single cardboard tube. The inner wall of the cardboard tube has an impervious layer of thin plastic film or other well known material to prevent the liquid from leaking out of the applicator through the walls of the tube, and directed down toward the porous tip. The tip is constructed with an inner circular ring cut partially through the tip to allow the open end of the tube to properly mate, thereby creating a torturous path for the liquid to follow and to not flow around the tip. The activator tool has edge guide forks adjacent the tip to guide the applicator in use.
The principal object of the invention is to provide a liquid applicator which has an L-shaped slide ring activator tool for one hand operation to crush a liquid filled glass ampoule for liquid dispensing, which tool includes guide forks which act as edge guides for the device.
A further object of the invention is to provide a liquid applicator which is simple and more inexpensive to construct, which is recyclable, and which can be easily modified with wider tips for various width liquid applications, and eliminates the need for a separate inner plastic tube.
A further object of the invention is to provide a liquid applicator which is safe to use.
A further object of the invention is to provide a liquid applicator which is useful to dispense a wide variety of liquid materials.
Other objects and advantageous features of the invention will be apparent from the description and claims.